My Personal Systems Disaster & How to Avoid It

If your team is dropping the ball, it’s WAYYYY more likely that they just don’t have the tools, or guidance to produce the results that you want.

So instead of hoping your team can read your mind and getting disappointed when they don’t, here’s how you can create a system that ACTUALLY gets work off your plate and replicate your results.

1️⃣Define how the process ends and the results. If you want a process that actually produces results, define the results that process is supposed to get.

For me, this was explicitly telling my team that the purpose of weekly client calls was not just update them only on what we were working on, but also to show them that they were constantly listening to them and looking for ways to optimize their businesses.

My clients loved that we answered their questions before they asked them and that they felt so confident in our partnership because we addressed everything from big questions to little, off the cuff requests and comments, to show that we were listening all the time.

With this in my mind, the team was better prepared to lead the meeting. So what end result do you want your process to produce?

2️⃣ Outline each step to fill in the blanks starting and the results you want to end up with. No step is too small.

This can feel overwhelming and burdensome, but for the first draft, you want this to be comprehensive. You can edit it down later, but you don’t want to find out you missed crucial steps when the process is being executed wrong.

Start from the beginning and focus on what am I doing to produce this result?

When I applied this lens, the phases of the client call process became really clear. Phase 1 – preparation and the steps I took to prepare. Phase 2 – Facilitation and how I facilitated those calls and finally, Phase 3 – Wrap-up and all closing actions that made my clients feel oh-so-secure.

3️⃣Gather the resources. What do you use to complete each step of this process? Note all the tools, folders, templates, tech, passwords, everything that you access to complete this work.

I already knew that I needed to hand over the wrap up template to my team, but as I walked through the process, there were 3 other templates that I didn’t consciously think about, but used on a regular basis. These templates would help my team move through the process faster.

So think about all the resources you need to complete this task and get the results that you want.

4️⃣Package the process. Package each step and resources in an easy-to-access way.

Keep it all together in the same folder, document or task so it’s easy to reference. Having to flip back and forth between different documents, softwares and folders to find all the info you need to complete a process is a drag.

It creates confusion and slows down training. Package your process and all of the resources in one place that’s easily accessible for all team members.

Applying this framework to your systems and SOPs you’ll be able to hand off work more quickly.

Your team members will have few questions, they’ll know exactly how to get the results you get so you can let go with confidence that the work will get to your standards.